Philrad's '09 theme/amusement park visits

^ Thanks for the comments, James!

Yes, in looking at other trip reports and online, they seem to have some really crazy looking flat rides at Oktoberfest. It still seems funny that they would have so many spinning one's with all of that beer! Is it true they have vomitoriums set up?

While I might hit up a coaster and ride some of the tamer flats, I know I won't be doing the insane looking stuff like Flying Circus and (of course) the Star Flyer!!!

Well, here I am again...the guy that has never been on a TPR field trip but posts wacky trip reports that make people scratch their heads and go, "WTF"?

I am hoping that I can get 1,000 pictures on one page one day just to boggggggg down your 'puters when you try to download!

This time is yet another Labor Day weekend outing at HersheyPark. What can one say about Hershey? We are 3 for 3 on Labor Day weekends as far as weather and the park kicks major ass...that is all.

Last picture of us waiting in line for Fahrenheit. Don't worry kids, we're really not drunk!

The Alive Milkmen were performing a free show...

Even Fahrenheit cannot escape it's wicked amount of wetness!

Ever rode Tidal Force? It is a very evil water ride that forces mass amounts of wetness by placing cargo nets above to keep the water from escaping!

Sea lion wouldn't hesitate to bark at the crowd if people weren't clapping despite the failure of the villain getting too drunk the night before and not showing up for his scheduled performance!

I guess the villain decided to call in sick, so they improvised the normal show with more high diving and sea lion antics than usual - it rocked!

They also had high divers.

I'm only kidding...he really DID love balancing a ball on his nose to get those fishy treats!

Fortunately for PETA, only one sea lion was hurt in the creation of this show.

The sea lion show told us that we would get wet only because it was a salt water show. If it was regular water, you would leave as a dry person.

Man, I miss me some Green Water Landing at CP. But sunny days are here again with the announcement of the moonshine drinkin' anti-kids/anti-family log ride. Woo-Hoo!

I guess that this could be a queue for an Intamin someday.

This is the hose in which the track lubricants flow...BEWARE!

Noted track lubricants.

Great Bear had a shower in the queue! Six Flags charges $1 per locker to store stuff while Hershey offers showers to guests that may have gotten soiled by track lubricants while in line!

My Dad wanted to represent TPR West Coast Bash at Hershey - how cool is that?

This is another place where Great Bear and Great Beer unite.

Great Bear meet Great Beer.

Great Beer.

Great Bear.

Let your children play...yeeeeaaah.

Riders on the Storm...

I have never been on this, but I would really like to own one.

Downsa-daisy.

Upsa-daisy....

Under the Boardwalk - we were not out of the sun, there were no people walking above...and believe it or not, we fell in love a long time before this pic! HA!

This coaster is really neat and fun and is one my favorite Intamin coasters that would not be named: Millenium Force, El Toro, Bizarro or Expedition GeForce. Along with those European/Asian Mega-Lite coasters normal people won't ever be able to ride in their lifetime cuz they won't build them in the U.S....ummmm, StormRunner, Top Thrill Dragster and ummmmm....maybe Dale Earnhardt's new Nascar thingies?

TPR tip #1 - ask for the cup of ice water! It will save you $3.50 and it really, really tastes like water, I swear it!

If anyone ever cared to see the backside of East Coast Water Works...enjoy!

Hey there StormRunner...what's goin' on? Say 'Hi' to your mutha for me, kay?

Roller Soaker - don't worry, I only waited 45 minutes for it this year... Yesssss!

Track, treck, trick, trock, truck.

This was my "cram the entire park into one picture" picture.

Wildcat - love the awesome cat logo, but the coaster is about the most "mehhh" coaster I have ever ridden. Although, I do like the strange farting noises it makes at the end of the circuit though - almost like it had too much fried food & cheese.

Oh wait, it's straightened up it's act now....sorta. Guess it's middle of the road and doesn't know what the hell to support - kinda like me.

Fahrenheit appears to be sinnnnking to the left. Must be one o' those darn Obama supporters. But wait, if you look at it from the other direction it is leaning towards the right. Damn those Conservative right-wing bastards! AAAARGGGHHH...which way am I supposed to be looking???

Only trouble is that they made it a two person raft instead of a four person...and only put in a total of four waterslides - FAIL!

So Hershey added a Tornado a couple of years ago when they launched the Boardwalk...

Lightning Racer - what can you say about this other than it is almost always a walk-on and kicks tons-o-buttock!

This contraption is designed to cage in little brats and dump water on their heads almost continually so they will behave the rest of the day at Hershey.

Tudor style houses and chocolate - two great tastes that go great together! Mmmmmmm!

Our campsite at the High Meadows Campground. We lucked out enough to be about 90 yards from the railroad track. We learned this in Williamsburg at the Anvil - if you're close enough to the tracks, you can't get in trouble for making too much noise!

Last weekend, we visited Canobie Lake park in Salem, NH. Despite the fact that it had been raining and would continue to spit and sputter throughout the day, the park was actually quite busy!

Overall, we were very impressed with the park. Very clean with some well-themed rides and (for the most part) friendly employees. Not a ton of thrill rides, but a great family park with a nice lakefront setting.

We took Michael's grand-daughters there and they loved it! They are now tall enough (barely 54") to ride just about any coaster or ride. I sure wish I would have been as bold as they are when I was 7 & 9!!!!

Onto the pics....

I failed, I should have made comments on your PTRs to help you get the pictures of multiple pages.

Bad moderator, bad moderator.

I've used quite of few of your photos for the Park Index.

Canobie on 9/12/09...

Thanks Olde and Newe Canobie Park - you are one cool little amusement park!

Hmmm...lot's of questions with this pic. Is this Sally from the Peanuts gang? Will this park succeed because it doesn't have a Nickelodeon themed kids area so little one's won't recognize the characters and therefore not have fun? Will a car skid into all those Sally's? Which Sally would you choose if you had your choice?

Ferris Wheel with an ominous background.

The flume ride looked neat, but we were wet enough by that time.

A nicely themed water tube ride that you ride with your clothes on. I believe these were a big hit at parks in the 80's.

For the dark ride car/loading platform enthusiasts...

'Mine of Lost Souls' a rather lengthy dark ride for the family - very cool!

Complete with a screaming wench - too awesome!

Next up was the diversely named 'Pirata'.

73' high with two inversions! The coaster came from Old Chicago (Chicago Loop), Alabama State Fairgrounds (Corkscrew) and then to Canobie - according to RCDB. I thought it might have been the Python from Busch, but I was wrong.

Everyone's favorite - the old Arrow Corkscrew!

Could it really be?

And what have we here?

Anyone that likes big meat needs to visit Canobie Lake!

Is it me, or is the chef trying to lick his own meat?

Giant cotton candy!

More awesome big food!

They had a half-pipe Skater, but it was the only ride that wasn't running. They tested while we were in the area, but I never saw anyone actually on it.

And the fully nude/exposed Caterpillar in all her green glory!

Semi-nude Caterpillar getting ready to reveal all!

Like Idlewild, they had a Caterpillar with the cover. They covered you immediately and kept you covered most of the ride.

DaVinci's Dream was the best themed swing ride I have ever seen.

If you like your Scrambler experience to be partially lighted and you enjoy the stench of sweaty socks, you'll love this ride!

Psycho-Drome: our first indoor Scrambler.

First drop...not much, but a fun little coaster and very smooth for it's age!

So here are a couple from the parking lot.

Yup...it's a lift hill. Not a lot of places to get shots of this one except from the parking lot.

The main deal here was the Yankee Cannonball coaster. Only 63 feet high, but we caught some nice air at the tops of the hills - especially in the front!

But they told us before we bought our tickets that all the rides would run in the rain...as long as there was no thunder or lightning! Woo-Hoo! This one tested my stamina though...

Next up was the well-themed 'Wipeout'. At that point, it began misting so we got a little wet on this one.

The flyers had big cock heads painted on them.

Next up - Rowdy Rooster. Always have to do the flyers! I think Michael was trying to teach his grand-daughter how to snap!

First up was the Frisbee. The ride cycle on this seemed about triple the duration of the one at SFNE (Tomahawk). Awesome flat!

Well maintained and very clean. Kinda reminds me of Conneaut Lake and Waldameer. I sure wish Conneaut could get the funding to upgrade their park to similar standards.

One of the coolest things about Canobie - big food!

They were preparing the park for Screeemfest.

Welcome to a wet Canobie Lake!

I failed, I should have made comments on your PTRs to help you get the pictures of multiple pages.

 

Bad moderator, bad moderator.

 

I've used quite of few of your photos for the Park Index

HAHA! That's okay, Larry! I have learned my lesson and will most likely post Philrad's 2010 adventures individually so it won't take the pages forever to load. I have had a good time posting these and hope folks have enjoyed our reports!

PS: Coming soon - Cedar Point's Halloweekends, Oktoberfest 2009 and (hopefully) Europa Park!

I'm curious about that log flume. Looks deliciously home made.

Chris.

^ It looked different in the way it ran through the woods in the concrete trough, but the lifts and drops looked like your standard flume (belt lift with splashdown).

I wish we could have tried it, but it was getting chilly and dark around the time we reached that end of the park. They did have some cool looking tunnels and water guns so specators could douse the riders!

Those Sallys are Emily from Clifford the Big Red Dog!!!

Page 3 of this thread is awesome! Thanks for all your pictures and effort!

^ Thanks for the comment - glad you enjoyed the reports!

^^Ahhhh...I thought it was a generic Sally doll! Guess I'm not up to speed with some of the "newer" cartoons like Clifford!

^ Alot better than those Peanuts what ever they are??

On Friday, September 18th, we headed out to our 4th annual trip to CP for Halloweekends. Last year, we overdid ourselves by going into the park on Friday night and then getting the two day pass for Sat and Sun.

This year, we did the wise thing and only went in Friday and Saturday. One thing we weren't expecting was the 'Heaven & Hell' day at CP with a Christian rock concert (Toby Mac+others) in the parking lot of Soak City. I only go to CP once or twice a year, but this is the first time I have ever known them to have a concert.

Regardless, the park was PACKED on Saturday! As you can see from my shot from the Space Spiral, there did not seem to be many empty parking spaces. For that reason, we did not ride much because the waits were simply too long.

Despite the fact, we still had a great time and the crowds were very light on Friday night. We got on just about everything then, so no biggie that we didn't ride a lot Saturday. The weather was perfect both days.

I can't give a report on the haunts as the lines just seemed way too long. The line was full for Happy Jack's Toy Factory and weaved behind Disaster Transport almost all the way back to Wicked Twister. Not knowing how long the lines were once you got inside, we decided to pass.

We'll close out Friday night with some random theming. Here are some tombstones...Whyte/Kuns.

Anyone know who they are?

Next up - Saturday's CP (extremely crowded) Heaven & Hell Fest!

Floral wheel.

Happy 20th b-day Magnum! Rode it Friday night in the fifth seat..awesome. Rode it Saturday in the 3rd seat and got thigh bruises. Think he's getting a little tempermental in his old age!

CP Factoid: This was from the Wildcat incident last year.

*Disclaimer: I don't know what the hell (oops, I mean heck!) I'm talking about and my supposed "facts" are not really backed up by much of anything.

Here are the Bills, Jets and Patriots fans rejoicing over Tom Brady's untimely demise!

Which Brady is it? If a Bills, Jets or Dolphins fan designed it, I am sure it must be Tom.

Oh, the joys of a non-crowded park!!!

Millenium line on Saturday (ugh). This was minutes after the resort ERT ended at noon. I can't help but think they opened the gates to the GP a little earlier than advertised.

Millenium line on Friday night - sweet!

Returning from the grave in 2010!!!!

One of the new haunts - HJTF.

I will say that the flat cycles were longer than normal due to the low crowds.

Matterhorn was begging people to ride.

...as was MaxAir.

Wicked Twister was a walk-on...

But we had fun on Friday night including a three car wait for TTD!

Here is the parking lot from the Space Spiral on Saturday - fail!

Interesting concept...a Christian rock fest during a Halloween event. Well, I'll be damned...I mean darned!

Wait...what is this stage thing set up in the Soak City parking lot?

...such as mummies on Antique Cars with spookily awesome window glare!

A familiar skyline, but with the addition of bug guts and power lines. I always try to capture images that no one else has posted on TPR!

Yep, here we are again...Cedar Point Halloweekends 2009!

So Saturday we sorta expected the crowds to be a bit larger than Friday night. My God (oops, I mean gosh) were they ever! I knew it was going to be bad when our "ERT" for being a Camper Village guest consisted of a half hour wait for MF!

Despite the fact, we just kinda walked around at our own leisure, took pictures and drank beer. The crowds did manage to dissipate some once the Christian rock concert was over, but no where near as light as Friday night. I think we got on a total of about six rides on Saturday.

CP goin' green. Thx for reading,

I'm off to Germany on Tuesday - YAY! Stay tuned for Oktoberfest drunken wackiness and (hopefully) some Europa Park goodness!

Who wouldn't want to ride a Green Monster?

While I wasn't thrilled with the big crowds, I wasn't nearly as p*ssed as Rocky Racoon!

Good ole' WWL...RIP.

New for 2009 - brought to you by National Grid.

The new sign on the Frontier Trail. Oooohhh/ahhhhhh!

The old Pirate dark ride is now home to the Magic House on Boo Hill. Complete with awesome purple pumpkins!

Great view of a great skyline.

...till we saw this. Ugghhh, no thanks.

We were going to ride Raptor...

Took a ride on the Space Spiral since there was only a five minute wait.

Even Demon Drop had a half hour wait. I had to do it though...I'm not sure how much longer it will be in operation!

Beware though...the games will eat your quarters and not give you any plays! Happened to me three times and this little bast#$d was one of 'em!

After the Midway show, we decided to go into the old Coliseum and play retro video games!

This is where they danced to Thriller - yep, the entire song!

But Michael didn't care - he joined right in the festivities! Perhaps the beer was starting to kick in?

They had cool non-Disney, DC, Marvel characters on the Midway. They were getting shunned by the kids because they didn't recognize any of them from Nickelodeon TV.

Lynyrd Skynyrd made a cameo with the Grave-Full Dead...but where the eff is Kid Rock?

We're not drunkards...really. We just get really happy when we see beer!

ICE COLD LABATTS! YAY! They also had Bud Lite and a pumpkin spice ale for Halloweekends.

Psyche! Red Garter is still here in all her glory. She still serves plenty of....

Here they are burning down the old Red Garter Saloon to make room for STR.

Here is your construction pic of STR. Impressed?

CCMR flashing it's backside.

Billy Bob's helping to build the logs that will be used for Shoot The Rapids.

Here's everyone's favorite. I would have ridden it because I don't think it as bad as everyone says it is. But wait in a line for it? Not today.

This element here will karate chop you in the neck if you are not well prepared.

Perhaps the best part of the ride here.

Maverick looking sexy today...too bad the line wasn't very sexy. Glad I rode you last night!

Upskirt...LE&CP style.

TTT!!!!

Funny how the drop doesn't look that high from this angle. Well okay, maybe it's really not THAT funny!

Wheelie shot...

THis MF angle is brought to you by the CP & LE Railroad.

This was the MF queue right after we got off our "ERT". Something tells me they opened the gates to the GP early today!

We brought our own black cat with us to Halloweekends...say hell-o to Betty Boop!